Everyone is buzzing about the obsoletetion of the LP. The speed of the Internet has brought on a need for musicians to release music more often in short bursts so they stay on the mind and in the face of their fans and the music media. The problem is if you are a touring band, the prospect of releasing 3 song EPs can be nauseating since LP sales account for a good amount of a touring bands revenue. While you want to stay in the newscycle if you aren’t making enough money to cover recording and touring costs it becomes irrelevant what your plans are if you can’t afford to execute them. If you are married to the idea of putting out a LP or even a EP of 6 or more songs the Hype EP is a great way to get a little more mileage out of your next release. If you are choosing to embrace this future and want to use this knowledge to your advantage follow me to the jump and I will explain how a Hype EP can help get you and your next release some extra mileage.

What is a Hype EP? A Hype EP is a common thing these days where a
label will put out a 3-5 song EP of songs that are on the bands next
release. This will get the buzz going about your upcoming release
as well as offer you the chance to get in the news more often. You
still will have the forthcoming larger release to sell on tour when you
release it a month or two later while having a means to get more press
and fan excitement for when you put out the big release later on.Often times this EP will be digital only to save on pressing.

Many people will tell you that your fans will be pissed that they are
buying the same songs a second time when they buy your EP and then LP.
There are easy ways to fix this problem . Since these people are
already your fans you can offer them the songs not on the EP as a pack
from your website or site likes Bandcamp, Nimbit, etc.for a reduced
price. You can make this special release priced lower than iTunes since
your profit margin will be higher if you sell your music through these
sites. Another way to make the EP more worthwhile to your fans is to
add bonus content like like throwaway tracks, live tracks, acoustic
versions, remixes etc. You can offer this bonus content on either the
Hype EP or the LP depending on what you want to give the incentive to
buy to.

The Hype EP not only works to get hype for your release but it can also
work to raise some extra funds to promote your upcoming release. You
can take the money from the sales of this EP and put them into further
promotion of your LP.